"Lyrical, atmospheric and distinctly compassionate..."8/10
Author: Sindre Kaspersen from Norway
24 September 2013
Iranian-Swedish screenwriter and director Babak Najafi''s feature film debut
which he wrote, premiered In competition at the 33rd Gothenburg International
Film Festival in 2010, was screened in the Generation section at the 60th Berlin
International Film Festival in 2010, was shot on location in Sweden and is a
Swedish production which was produced by Swedish producers Rebecka Lafrenz and
Mimmi Spång. It tells the story about a 15-year-old student named Sebastian who
lives in an apartment in Gothenburg, Sweden with his mother named Eva whom is
working as a newspaper carrier. Sebastian is not having the time of his life at
school and whilst he is constantly being bullied by his classmate and neighbour
named Kenny and some other guys, Eva is assaulted at her job and both of them
decides to keep their afflicting experiences to themselves out of consideration
for one another.

Subtly and engagingly directed by Iranian-Swedish filmmaker Babak Najafi, this
quietly paced fictional tale which is narrated mostly from the two main
characters'' viewpoints, draws a tangible and reflective portrayal of a Swedish
boy without a father whom is hoping to get a motor bike for his upcoming
birthday and his relationship with his mother who barely has the resources to
care for her beloved only child. While notable for its naturalistic milieu
depictions, sterling cinematography by Swedish cinematographer Simon Pramsten
and low-keyed production design by production designer Gilles Balabaud, this
character-driven and narrative-driven story about a self-sufficient person who
after stopping by at a quarry on his way home from school gets an idea about
building a bomb, and a mother who disgraces herself for the sake of making her
son happy, depicts two merging and genuinely heartrending studies of character.

This sociological, situational and incisive coming-of-age drama from the late
2000s which is set during and autumn in Sweden in the early 21st century and
where a single parent is becoming more and more aware of her limitations and the
child she has sole custody of is being violated and humiliated to the breaking
point by bullies, is impelled and reinforced by its cogent narrative structure,
substantial character development, subtle continuity, distinct realism, poignant
scenes between Sebastian and Eva, use of music, the interactive and authentic
acting performances by Swedish actor Sebastian Hiort af Ornås and Swedish
actress Eva Molander and the fine acting performance by Swedish actor Kenny
Wåhlbrink. A lyrical, atmospheric and distinctly compassionate indie which
gained, among other awards, The Church Of Sweden Film Award at the 33rd
Gothenburg Film Festival in 2010.

Loneliness and
Despair Superbly Portrayed9/10
Author: Suradit from Thailand
17 January 2015
Sebbe is a very sad, moving story of a teenage boy who is essentially alone and
abandoned by everyone around him. His father is gone. His mother is emotionally
unbalanced and behaves erratically. He is bullied and humiliated at school. And
he''s left to deal with it all on his own.

It''s difficult to describe too much of what actually happens without spoiling
the storyline. One example from the many depicted his mother can''t get him a
birthday gift, but she finds a winter jacket in the laundry room and steals it.
She presents it to Sebbe as a gift. He wears it to school where one of the other
students, one who has been relentlessly bullying him, recognizes it as his own
and accuses Sebbe of being a thief. His mother allows Sebbe to take the blame
for what she did. He forgives her, tells her to forget about it and her response
is to tell him she never wanted him and hates him. She kicks him out of the home
and even that small, inadequate sense of refuge in his hostile environment is
lost to him.

The acting is exceptionally good, especially by the young man playing Sebbe.
Often there is minimal dialogue, but he projects his despair, hopelessness and
the sense of total abandonment painfully well. It would be nice to think that
such abuse and cruelty would not exist especially in a country like Sweden,
which seems to be so protective and caring for its citizens but unfortunately
we all know that too many children suffer from such callous, truly inhuman
behavior even in the so-called "advanced" countries.

A very sad, depressing story that was written, produced and acted extremely
well.